Puer Magi Feliciano Magica
by oONekomataOo
Summary: My take on mysterious mascots turning normal school boys into "Puer Magi" or "Magical Boys" by granting any wish they desire in exchange for their services in fighting off monsters born from curses. Ah, who am I kidding? These boys were never normal to begin with. (Several aspects used from Puella Magi Madoka Magica, but not a direct APH translation.) Rated for language.
1. I Met Him In A Dream Or Something

**Puer Magi Feliciano Magica**

By: oONekomataOo

**Disclaimer:** One can own the pasta, but not the Nation that endorses it…Or Hetalia in general.

**Warnings:** AU, magical boys, Romano's mouth, creepy mascots, shonen-ai (boy-boy pairings), and France being…well, French.

I've never written a Hetalia fanfic before, so I'm more excited than China at a panda petting zoo for this. If you didn't guess from the title, it's based on the anime _Puella Magi Madoka Magica_. No, you don't need to know that series to understand this one, but as this fic continues, there will be spoilers for _Puella Magi Madoka Madoka_.

This will borrow from the _Madoka_ universe, but not be a direct translation (although the first chapter will be fairly similar to the first episode of _Madoka_ before branching out). You'll probably see some similarities in characters, attacks, and situations, but overall, this was intended to be different. Except for the character playing the "Mami" role. That was intended to make me laugh.

Also, Kyubey was a direct import from _Madoka_ fandom because I despise the little bastard so. And I just couldn't bring myself to hate any of the Mochis that much. Or Flying Mint Bunny. FMB is Boss.

Ciao!

**- Chapter 1: "I First Met Him In A Dream Or Something…" -**

Feliciano hated thunderstorms.

Perhaps even "hate" wasn't a strong enough word. Even the sight of dark thunder clouds made the young Italian internally cringe. He associated everything bad with them. The instantaneous strike of a thunderclap, light filling the room and flashing over the contents, twisting the shadowy forms of the furniture, bookshelves, and miscellaneous clothes scattered about his room. In the day, he never gave them another thought, but at night when the lightning would strike just right…they became one of the monsters parents warned their children about, should they misbehave.

Of course Feliciano had long since grown out of the monsters in the closet threatening to eat him. He hadn't even screamed about the shadow beasts trying to gobble him up in 2 years. It was a point of pride with him. Especially considering the fateful thunderstorm that took his family from him.

Feliciano _really_ hated thunderstorms.

He shuddered as he heard a loud thunderclap followed by a scream. It sounded like his dad's. Someone held the Italian tightly as dirt and debris blinded his eyes. Feliciano thought he was dreaming. At least he hoped so. The 16 year old couldn't bear to live through another night like that. He knew his eyes should be stinging, but wasn't able to feel anything as he wiped the burnt earth out of them. Then came the smell…

A putrid, gut-wrenching odor filled the air, making Feliciano want to gag. He knew deep down that he hadn't smelled that in years, but it came back as strong as ever in his nightmares. The brunette wondered if he'd ever be able to forget it.

Before he knew it, someone was dragging him off into the darkness. Feliciano didn't want to leave the field they were in, but was unable to stop his trembling legs from carrying him away. He could feel the other person's hand shaking inside his. Both of them were scared.

Another flash, another scream. The storm was getting closer. Feliciano's breath was caught in his throat. Why was this happening? What had he done? What had any of these people done? He wiped his eyes, knowing that they stung even without the tears or feeling to prove it.

"Please, stop…just stop…"

Everything felt so hopeless. His 6 year old body couldn't take this and when another flash of that horrible thunder struck the ground near them, both Feli and his companion were tossed into the air like ragdolls. His younger self landed roughly on his shoulder and couldn't move. Feliciano held his wounded arm and closed his eyes. He didn't want to suffer like this. It would be better to let the storm take him like it did the others.

Thunder crashed and a voice cried out again, this time beside Feliciano.

Feli opened his eyes in a flash to find himself staring into green ones. He thought he heard a voice, but he couldn't understand what was said. He could only stare into the green eyes that were holding back pain to encourage him to run. To escape this hell. The Italian shook his head, unable to leave this person behind. Lightning flashed around them as if the entire sky itself was angry. It was almost like the thunderbolts had become a lindworm, kelpie, giant, or whatever other mythical beasts he heard a boy talk about at school in attempts to scare the others.

The green eyed boy's gaze became more desperate and he pushed Feli on, wordlessly begging him to run. Feliciano shook his head again and felt another shove, stronger this time. It was strong enough to knock him down the hill they'd landed on.

"Wait! Don't go!" escaped the yell from Feliciano's 6 year old self.

He rolled over his shoulder painfully during his tumble down the giant hill. At the very bottom, he gripped his arm again, feeling numbness in place of pain. Feli noticed his shirt cling to his chest damply. Had he landed in a puddle? The boy felt it with his arm and saw colors spring to life in the next lightning flash. It was red.

He knew it was blood, but it wasn't his. It must have came from the green-eyed boy on the top of the hill. The one who pushed him to safety.

_I have to make sure he's alright! _

Feliciano began to run up the rain-soaked hill only to tumble down again. He grabbed blindly at grass and loose patches of dirt to assist him, but to no avail. Then giving a cry, he sprinted again with all his might and made it halfway up the hill before feeling his feet slipping.

Still he tore at the ground, his legs somehow extending and feet finding footholds that weren't there previously. He was back in his 16 year old body and determined to make it to the top of this hill.

During his climb, the hill started growing as if a set of invisible hands pinched it and dragged it closer to the night sky. Suddenly, the hill had transformed into an endless, spiraling marble staircase. As Feli continued to climb, walls sprung up around him and large circles with intricate patterns glowed above him, spinning with a gentle hum of power surging though them.

Feliciano had no time to make sense of all this, he just had to get to the top of this place. He had to help that boy with the green eyes.

_He's all alone with that monster…he must be so scared…_

With every step closer he came to the top, whispers hissed and snarled. They bounced off the ornate checkerboard walls around him, some sounding angry others sounding distraught. As Feli continued running the whispers became louder, but the Italian couldn't understand them no matter how hard he tried. Despite going to a high school that prided itself on diversity and exchange students, Feliciano had never heard anything like this language. It sounded dark and painful. It reminded him of the thunderstorm.

_I can't think about that now… Not now… Not when somebody needs me!_

After running up the stairs for what felt like an eternity, Feliciano was at the top. He faced the large door covered with gears and levers, trying to figure out a way to open it. After examining it for a moment, Feli decided there was no time and pushed on it with all his might. Gears whirred around him and levers bent into place to reveal the world beyond the door.

It was a terrifying scene. It looked like his current town of Taika had been hit by an earthquake, tornado, and tsunami all at once. Buildings were uprooted like trees, pools of water and bodies were forming were there were once parks and gardens, and the wind howled around him like a ghost. However, when he looked up, Feliciano saw the worst of it – A giant floating shadow-like monster floating in the middle of the city with one of those strange glowing designs the Italian had seen spinning around the never ending staircase. When the creature laughed, Feliciano felt his blood turn to ice and his body fill with despair. It sounded so cold and cruel, but at the same time mad with grief.

"W-What _is_ that?!"

Feliciano felt the monster's gaze fall on him and he began to tremble uncontrollably. He saw something white flash about out of the corner of his eye, but was unable to look away from the abomination in the sky. He was bound to the rooftop in fear.

/"Are you afraid, Feliciano Vargas?"/

The petrified Italian snapped his attention over to the strange white creature that appeared before him on the rubble of the rooftop. It looked like some kind of cat-rabbit hybrid with fur as white as snow and eyes as red as blood. The 'cabbit' stared back at him, smile fixed into place.

"W-What are you?"

The voice came from nowhere and everywhere at once. He never even saw the white animal's lips move.

/My name is Kyubey,/ replied the creature, unblinkingly. /Do you desire the power to stop this disaster?/

/"I-I don't understand…I'm not, I mean I can't do anything…"/ Feliciano whimpered, feeling the giant monster drawing near. /"I'm just a human…humans don't fight things like that."/

The small animal swished its giant tail and stared at him with a smile that seemed frozen in place.

/That's not true at all,/ it said. /I can help you. I can give you the power to fight monsters such as that./

"The power to fight…_that?_"

/Yes, in exchange for any wish you desire, I can grant you the power of a Puer Magi, the power of a Magical Boy, to save this land./

"How can you do that?"

The mysterious white being stared back unflinchingly.

/It's my job to find young adults with great magical potential like yourself and unleash it into a power that you can use. In exchange, you fight Witches, like the one you see there./ Kyubey tilted his head when he saw the candidate whimper. /They aren't all this big. Witches come in many shapes and sizes; this one just happens to be particularly powerful./

The 'Witch' as Kyubey had called it floated closer and closer. In a few moments it would be on top of their location.

/You may want to make up your mind quickly,/ suggested the alien-like creature. /Walpurgisnacht will be upon us soon./

"I-I…"

No sooner than he had spoken those words had a blast of green light appeared over them, surrounding another boy around Feliciano's age, racing into battle. His eyes never met Feli's, but the latter saw just how much they were alike, down to the gravity-defying curl off to the side of his head.

"What is he doing?!" Feliciano cried out in shock.

/He's fighting,/ the white creature replied, eyeing the new boy curiously. /He is another Puer Magi./

The mysterious boy flitted around the battlefield effortlessly, drawing the giant, floating Witch away from Feliciano. Buildings collapsed all around them, but Feliciano couldn't take his eyes off the battle.

"Will he win?" the brunette asked worriedly.

/No./ the emotionless Kyubey replied.

Feli tore his eyes off the battlefield to look at the animal in disbelief that he could answer so bluntly, when he felt another building be torn out of the ground near them and thrown like a javelin at the Puer Magi.

Caught up fighting off the Witch's minions, the Puer Magi had no time to bring up his shield and took most of the force of the blast on his own. He was hurtled across another demolished building and landed in the rafters of a third.

"He's in trouble!" exclaimed Feliciano. "We have to do something!"

/I can't do anything to fight Witches…/ the white cabbit mused. /I can only grant others the power to fight./

Feli's breath caught in his throat. From across the ruined city the battered Puer Magi blinked back into consciousness.

/So tell me, Feliciano Vargas…will you make a contract with me?/

Feliciano extended his hand while the other boy's scream was silenced by the wind.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The alarm clock rang in Feliciano's ear like a fire alarm, waking him up from what had to be his worst nightmare in years. The Italian's sleepwear clung damply to his skin from sweat. It took a few moments for his eyes to refocus and remember where he was – in his adoptive family's house far away from the nightmare world. No Witches or monsters could harm him here.

Or at least that's what he told himself.

Feliciano glanced at the clock and decided to get moving before he was late. Noting the sheen of sweat covering his body, the brunette decided that a quick shower was priority one and he walked off towards the bathroom, grabbing his school uniform on the way.

A few minutes of refreshing water later and Feli was ready to get ready for school. He pulled on his uniform, straightening his tie and admiring the giant "W' on the school crest. Feliciano absentmindedly began humming a song about pasta and thinking about his friends to take his mind off the dream. When he finished, he headed downstairs to grab a quick bite to eat before walking to school.

"Hello, sweetie!" his adoptive mother, Elizabeta, cheerfully greeted him. She was flipping a pancake in her trusty frying pan while grabbing a bottle for her youngest son in the other.

"Ja!" his younger brother raised his spoon up in greeting, accidently spilling cereal across his highchair tray.

"Good morning, Otto!" Feliciano smiled and patted his little brother's head, pulling a stray Cheerio from his blonde hair. Somehow, even though they weren't related by blood, Feliciano was still very much attached to the little boy as if they were real brothers.

"Good morning, Feliciano," Roderich nodded his head curtly.

"G-Good morning, sir!" beamed the Italian. Sometimes Feli felt a little nervous around his adoptive father, who was a real stickler for rules and discipline. Feliciano still cared for him as he did the others, but still could recall numerous lectures on manners and respect that nearly put him to sleep and led into lectures about _that_.

Feliciano sat down at the table and poured himself a glass of orange juice.

"Feliciano? Are you feeling alright, honey?" Inquired Elizabeta, as she set a plate of food down in front of him. "You're looking a little pale…"

"Ve~?" the brunette responded, caught off guard.

"Is everything ok at school?" she asked, as her grip tightened ever so slightly on her frying pan.

"Oh, I'm fine," smiled Feliciano. "Just a little tired."

He loved his adoptive family as if they were his real family, but was still a little uncomfortable talking about his biological family with them. So, he had never bothered them about his nightmares after he turned 12 in order to keep them from worrying.

That and he remembered the last time a bully in elementary school teased him about crying over his late family, Elizabeta personally tracked the little shit down and forced him to apologize. When that boy's dad came over, hollering at Elizabeta for disciplining his kid and pissing him off, she asked him to apologize too. That man was foolish enough to say something Feli would never dare to repeat to a woman (or anyone in general), causing Elizabeta to take out her new frying pan (purchased during her errands that morning) and clocked the man upside his now-misshapen head. She then proceeded to glare at the onlookers, telling them that if anyone had something rude to say about her son, they'd have to deal with her first.

And so, Feliciano learned that despite being a beautiful mother, talented at raising a family, cooking, and running the household, Elizabeta still had the strength of 20 bodybuilders and could drop a man three times her size in an instant if he crossed her. Not surprisingly, Feliciano really admired her and nobody ever teased him about not having a "real" family from that day on.

On his walk to school, Feliciano was met by his two best friends – Francis and Kiku. He'd known Francis since he moved in with the Edelstein family, as the boy lived nearby. Francis was a year older than Feliciano and always looked out for him like a big brother. Kiku had transferred into their class at World Academy about half a year ago, and despite the culture shock and concern about the amount of pasta the Italian ingested daily, hit it off right away with Feliciano.

After a short while of walking, the Frenchman snapped Feliciano out of his daze.

"Feliciano? Feliciano? Mon ami, are you in there?" he asked, waving his hand in front of Feli's face.

"Ve~?"

"You're beginning to worry me, Feli! I just spent the last five minutes talking about my newfound pasta allergy and you just spaced out!"

"Are you feeling ill, Feliciano-kun?" asked Kiku.

"No, no, nothing like that!" the pasta lover tried to reassure his friends. "It's just…well…I had a really strange dream last night…"

"Ohonhonhon!" his froggy friend chuckled, resting an arm over Feli's shoulders. "One of _those_ dreams, non? Big Brother is very experienced with those. Tell me about it!"

"It's not like that!" squeaked a very flustered Feli. Then, noting his confused Japanese friend reaching for his phone, panicked and shoved Francis off. "Wait, Kiku! Don't call the cops, you know Francis always acts like a freak!"

Ignoring the Frenchman's fake pouts and protests, Kiku lowered his phone almost reluctantly, and put it back into his pocket, confusion clear on his face.

"Call the cops…? O-Oh, right. Of course not."

The trio continued on their way to school with Francis telling the others all about his beautiful new girlfriend he met last week. Feliciano responded with the appropriate 'oohs' and 'ahhs' while Kiku tried to mentally keep track of how many lovers this made for Francis, who almost moved faster than the playboys in movies and manga he was familiar with. He wondered if that was also normal for this country, strange place that it was.

When they got to school, Francis bid his farewells to Feliciano and Kiku before heading off with his childhood friend/partner in crime to either plot some kind of prank or flirt with a cute girl before the morning bell. That boy was a Junior, but also very kind to Feli and made him smile when he felt down with a bizarre cheer up charm. The Italian remembered there used to be another member of Francis's trio of best friends, but he was older and graduated a year or two ago.

As Kiku and Feliciano made their way to their classroom, they noticed a group of girls forming around the main office. This usually happened for one of two reasons. One, a famous foreign person was visiting or two…

"I wonder if we have a new transfer student?" the black-haired boy pondered.

"Ve~ That could be, Kiku."

Transfer students were a frequent occurrence for their high school. Typically, a new student or two would start each month, catching everybody's interest. Feliciano assumed by the amount of girls gathered outside the office trying to get a peek at the transfer student, that it was a boy or a very wealthy/pretty/famous/all of the above girl. Last month, a shy freshman girl named Lili transferred in. Most people ignored her until they found out that she was a Zwingli, the family that owns half the banks in the world. She's had a steady trail of people following her since. Feliciano felt bad for her, knowing what it was like to be surrounded by people asking you about things you don't want to talk about when you'd prefer to breathe and have some alone time.

"We should hurry or we'll be late to class," Kiku said, tugging on Feliciano's sleeve.

"Oh, you're right!" grinned the Italian, following his friend.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Ok, dudes, I got a surprise for you all today!" boomed a teacher voice above the chatter going on in the room. "We got a new transfer student in this morning from Italy. Let's all make him feel welcome and see who can eat more pasta, him or Feliciano!"

Feliciano and the other students chuckled. Mr. Alfred Jones was one of the more interesting teachers at World Academy. He was popular with many of the students and staff alike for having a sense of humor, being very enthusiastic about everything, and encouraging others to follow the American Dream (which seemed to be edited by Mr. Jones to include hamburgers and milkshakes for all). Ironically, he was also looked down on by the people who didn't like him for those same reasons.

"Come on in, bro!" the homeroom teacher called out to the shadow of a person behind the door. After a moment, he blinked and turned to Feli. "Uh, how do you say that in Italian, Feliciano?"

Before he could respond, the new student entered with an annoyed "Entrare. Cazzo." And stood in front of the chalkboard, scowl fixed in place.

Feliciano gasped. Not just because he couldn't believe someone would talk to a teacher like that, but because this boy looked exactly like the one from his nightmare about the fluffy genie and the giant monster.

"Oh, well 'entrare cazzo' then," grinned the oblivious teacher.

"No, 'entrare' means enter. 'Cazzo' is how I refer to people like you," the transfer student cut off the overly-happy teacher.

"I see. Thanks then," Alfred turned to his class and gestured towards his new student. "This is Lovino Firenze. Like I said he's from Italy, like Feli over there."

The entire class watched him curiously, several of the girls giggling amongst themselves. A few students even gestured to Lovino's ahoge which mirrored Feliciano's. Mr. Jones seemed to have noticed this as well.

"Does everyone in Italy have one of those hair curls?" he asked curiously.

"No."

"Haha, just you guys then?"

"No."

"Ooookay. Anything else you'd like to say to the class?"

"Vai all'inferno," came Lovino's reply with an angelic smile.

At this, several girls swooned and Alfred told him to take a seat in the second row. Feliciano on the other hand gasped at the new student sitting diagonal from him in shock. He was the only one in the classroom that knew exactly what Lovino said, although some of the Spanish-speakers were a little suspicious.

Meanwhile, Lovino made sure to glare at Feli once more for good measure before he sat down. The politer of the two Italians became even more confused. It was weird enough that some guy who appeared in his dream suddenly appears in his class the day after. It was also weird that he would be so rude to everyone there. It was even weirder that he seemed to be extra-annoyed with Feliciano, who was a complete stranger to him, as far as he knew.

The clock ticked by for Homeroom as the brown-eyed boy tried to figure out why Lovino looked so familiar and so pissed off. He didn't even notice he was staring until he felt a kick on the back of his chair and heard Francis's voice whispering to him.

("What's with you? Are you in love with him or something?")

("No, of course not!")

Unfortunately, the pasta-lover had accidently knocked over his textbook while Francis was teasing him. It landed on the ground with a crash and all eyes turned to the blushing Italian. Lovino was glaring at him again, he noticed.

Feliciano quickly gathered up his textbook with a fast apology and kept his eyes (and hands) glued to it for the rest of the period.

As soon as the bell rang, signaling the end of Homeroom, Feliciano shoved his things into his book bag quickly in order to make it out of there before either Francis teased him, Kiku asked him about his strange study habits, the transfer student made him feel more uneasy, or all of the above.

"Yo, Vargas! Can I see you for a minute?"

So much for that plan. The brunette gulped and wondered if his teacher was calling him up because he was upset with him. Mr. Jones seemed nice enough most of the time, but that didn't mean Feliciano wanted to see what he looked like when he got mad. He still remembered the time his teacher effortlessly lifted up the back end of a car for another student to grab a stray baseball from underneath during gym class. The guy was ripped!

"I-I'm so sorry for interrupting, Mr. Jones!" Feliciano stammered when he got closer to Alfred's desk. The Italian lowered his eyes and kept them fixed on the strange hamburger trinkets that adorned the American's desk. He vaguely remembered his teacher mentioning something about Happy Meals. Or was it Smiley Meals? He couldn't remember.

"Dude, relax!" laughed the blonde. "That's not why I called you over."

"Ve~?"

"You're the Class Rep, right?" Mr. Jones asked, gesturing to the small badge on Feli's sleeve, identifying him as such.

"Yes, sir!" Feli brightened.

"Good, then you won't mind showing the new guy around," beamed his teacher.

"Of course," Feliciano tried to return the smile. Honestly, he wasn't so sure about how that would go as turned to Lovino beside him. "Firenze is an Italian name, parla Italiano?"

"Che cazzo," Lovino glared back, causing his classmate to inwardly wince.

"I'll take that as a 'yes' then…"

"Sweet, you're friends already!" grinned Mr. Jones, having no clue what his new student said. "Anyway, Feliciano, I need you to show him the office first. The secretary should have his schedule printed off by now."

"Ok!"

"And don't forget to show him the cafeteria! It's important! We're having hamburgers today!"

Feliciano laughed and waved to his teacher on his way out of the room with Lovino.

Not being one for awkward silences (or silences in general) Feliciano took it upon himself to talk the new student's ear off about World Academy and how much he liked it.

"Ve~! I remember I was really nervous on my first day, but it all ended up alright. Everyone here is very friendly and will help out, especially for new students. My friend Francis was my mentor here because he's been going here since 2nd grade! Can you believe that?" The tour guide rambled on. "Of course all of the younger students use the other building near the entrance of the campus. We're technically separate schools, but most of the students who go to the elementary school end up coming here and—"

"Shut up," Lovino told him coldly. "You sound like an idiot."

Not for the first time upon meeting the scowly Italian, Feli was taken aback that a stranger would be so rude to him.

"…I guess you can't help it," the green-eyed boy sighed. "That's the kind of person you are."

Feliciano thought he caught just the beginnings of a smile on Lovino's face, but knew better than to mention anything.

"You're an idiota, but you should stay that way and not do anything to change it."

"Ve~? What do you mean Lovino?" asked the puzzled brunette.

"What I mean," began Lovino, seemingly recoiling at the sound of his name, "Is that your life is looking pretty fucking good and you shouldn't do anything to change that."

And with that, the transfer student spun on his heel and walked off.

" L-Lovino, wait! You don't know where the office is!" Feli sweatdropped. " Well, actually, you are headed the right direction, but that's not the point!"

The brown-eyed boy ran after him, only to turn the corner and find an empty hallway.

"Ve~? Lovino?"

Feliciano walked on, trying to figure out what could have set the new student off like that. He walked past a large window, completely oblivious to the small white animal that watched him from a tree branch, slowly swishing its tail back and forth like clockwork.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"So…you lost the transfer student?" Francis asked over his latte. School had let out a half hour ago and the trio of Francis, Feli, and Kiku had met up at their favorite coffee shop – Mint Bunny Café.

"I didn't _lose_ him," Feliciano tried to explain, sadly sipping on his strawberry crème soda. "He just disappeared…"

"So he just took off and disappeared? What a strange person…"

"It was not very polite to leave you behind," nodded Kiku. "You were trying to help."

"That's what I thought too, but he seemed so angry at me for some reason…"

"That's odd. Do you know him from somewhere?" The Frenchman asked.

"No, I don't….Or at least I don't think so…He seems really familiar…"

" Like déjà vu?" Francis inquired, adding a mysterious tone to his voice. "Maybe you knew each other in a past life!"

"Now _you_ are the one sounding like a strange person," smiled Kiku.

"Maybe we did…" mused the brunette.

"Aha! You see?" Francis laughed in victory. Everyone promptly ignored him.

"What makes you think that, Feliciano-kun?"

"I had this dream last night…."

"Ohonhonhon! The dream de amour!"

"I already told you it wasn't like that!" Feli blushed, before sighing. He seemed to be doing a lot of that today. "It was weird though…there were all kinds of symbols floating in the sky, a really long staircase, and Lovino was there too!"

"Firenze-san was there?"

"You had a dream de amour about the transfer student?"

"No! Francis, it's not like that at all!" shrieked the brown-eyed boy.

Francis laughed and patted his friend's head affectionately.

"I'm sorry, mon ami, you're just so cute when you're flustered!" the blonde then hugged his friend to show him the depths of his semi-apology, but anyone who knows Francis knew it was only an excuse to hug the adorable Italian. "Big Brother is sorry, please forgive me~"

"Ve~ I suppose I can just this once," Feliciano laughed.

"What a relief!"

"Feliciano-kun, are you certain that this is the first time you met Firenze-san?" asked Kiku, getting the conversation back on track.

"I guess so," he laughed. "It sounds weird to say I first met him in a dream or something…"

The more he thought about it, the less he could remember about his dream. He knew he was probably missing something…but all the pasta lover could recall was the sound of thunder, the staircase, fancy symbols floating around him, and Lovino blazing through the sky after…a shadow? Feliciano wished that he had written it down after he woke up; it seemed important for some reason.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

After discussing the scowly transfer student, Francis quickly led the discussion to more important topics – such as himself.

He rambled on for awhile about the injustice of a particular teacher he disliked, who apparently gave him a "B" on a paper Francis believed was "A++" work. The blonde said his teacher was too boring and too blind to see the beauty of Francis's work. He was also convinced that he had something against the French, but hadn't been able to prove this as of yet to the others. Not long after his rant, Francis quickly stood up and excused himself.

"Sorry boys, I have to go!" he smiled. "Big Brother has a date!"

They waved him off and stood to gather their things as well. Feliciano wasn't quite ready to head home yet, so he accompanied Kiku to the music store to pick up a CD he had ordered.

The store itself was nestled in among other specialty stores at the Nor 5 Mall. This giant plaza had anything and everything you could imagine from Swedish furniture stores to mysterious magic shops. Some of the stores they walked past made Feliciano giggle. 'Puffin Palace,' 'The King's Axe,' and 'Troll Bridge Bakery' were enough to merit a chuckle from even his uncommonly stoic friend. This lasted until Feli lingered outside H.T.'s Pet Supplies just long enough for Kiku to have to drag him away by his sleeve to avoid loitering.

"But, Kiku, the animals are so cute! They even had puppies in the front window!" Feli squee'd. "At least I think they were puppies…they were so fluffy it was kind of hard to tell…"

Kiku just sighed and continued to lead his friend away, fighting every urge in his body not to turn around and stare googly-eyed at all the kawai baby animals for the rest of the afternoon.

Inside the music store, Kiku informed Feliciano that he had special ordered a CD by his favorite artist – Xiǎaotíqín. Feliciano didn't recognize the name, so Kiku told him he was a famous violinist. The Italian nodded as his friend walked over to the clerk to get his CD.

Feliciano noticed the line was a little long, so he decided to listen to some music while he waited. He approached a small stand with a set of headphones and a list of all the available music tracks to listen to. Placing the device over his ears, Feliciano clicked on an upbeat song by one of his favorite artists.

/…he…lp…me…/

Feliciano opened his eyes and stopped bopping his head to the music.

'_What was that?_'

/…he…lp…me…/

'_Am I imagining things?_' Feli thought to himself. '_That didn't sound like part of the song…'_

/…you….p…lease….help…m…me…/

After the third time, worry got the best of him and he dashed out of the store, trying to follow the sound of the voice. It sounded like it came from everywhere as it rang out inside his head. Feliciano let his instinct guide him and followed his feet.

Upon seeing his friend run out in a panic, Kiku quickly paid for his CD and took off after Feli, apologizing over his shoulder to the clerk.

'_What could have gotten into him?_'

Feliciano was moving quickly, but not sprinting, which was fortunate for Kiku. The Japanese boy knew his friend was next to impossible to catch up to when actually motivated to run.

"Feliciano!" Kiku called out. "What happened?"

"I-I'm not sure," he admitted, slowing down a little to let Kiku catch up. "I heard someone calling for help and…um…"

"Who was it?"

"I didn't recognize the voice…"

"Are you sure you didn't just hear it in a song? Or maybe someone passing by—"

/…help…me…/

The two man team had looks of equal shock on their faces. They looked around trying to figure out where it came from, but it didn't sound like it came from a specific direction, it just filled their minds.

"That way!" Feli pointed near the staircase and took off running.

It wasn't long after Feliciano slowed down (a particularly stern-looking security guard gave them a disapproving look) that the voice led them down a more deserted part of the mall. It seemed strange to the duo that no one else appeared to hear the voice. Eventually, the boys were face to face with a door reading 'Maintenance: Employees Only.'

Kiku was ready to give up, but with some gentle prodding (i.e. begging) from Feliciano, they slowly opened the door and stepped inside the dimly lit room. The shorter boy reached for a light switch, but couldn't find one.

"Maybe we should turn back?" asked Kiku.

"But we can't just leave the voice alone! It sounds hurt!" Feli said.

They took a few more reluctant steps inside until an uncomfortable whoosh whistled past them, warping the world with it. Both boys stopped in fear to watch the maintenance room suddenly become a huge greenhouse. Waves of heat poured over them and their noses were bombarded with the sickenly sweet smell of dying flowers and olives. Out of nowhere, a strange looking creature resembling a giant cottonball with a fake mustache tottered past them.

This caused the boys to jump a little in surprise, but the cottonball paid little attention to them. It continued walking past them, muttering in a strange language. Kiku couldn't understand a word of it, but Feliciano was able to pick out bits and pieces of Italian.

"It said something about 'eating' and 'stabbing' and…'death," he gulped.

Suddenly, the cottonball creature chose that moment to acknowledge the boys, turning to face them with glowing red eyes and growls like a rabid animal. Feliciano meeped while Kiku grabbed his arm and had them back up cautiously.

In the process of backing away from the menacing swab of cotton, Feliciano nearly tripped over something small.

/Please…help me…/

The Italian looked down and saw an injured animal resembling a rabbit and a cat. Its white fur was messed up and stained with patches of blood, but it's face remained frozen. It didn't blink, it didn't whimper, it only stared at the brunette with ruby-colored eyes and a smile hiding more than a secret or two.

"A-Are you the one that called out to me?" Feli whispered.

/Yes…I was attacked…I need help…/

Feliciano knelt down and picked up the injured creature.

"Of course! What can I do to—"

"Feliciano-kun! What is that?" Kiku hissed, hoping not to set off the mustache-clad cottonball.

"I don't know," admitted Feli. "But he needs our help!"

/…My name…is Kyubey…/ the creature sounded strained from the effort of communicating.

"How did you do that?" Kiku asked, bewildered. "I heard your voice in my head, but you weren't moving your lips."

/…My kind doesn't use…spoken language…we use…telepathy…only those with potential, like you two…can hear me…/

"Potential for what?" asked Feliciano.

/…Potential to—/

"Feliciano-kun! Look out!"

Suddenly, Kiku leapt between his friend and the enraged cottonball, who had decided to jump at them with a high-pitched cry. Quickly, boys tried to shield themselves with their arms.

BOOM!

A gunshot roared out and the monster exploded. The next thing either boy knew, a third person walked over towards them amidst the settling dust. As the remains of the strange beast faded, so did the mysterious world the duo was pulled into.

"Are you alright?" asked a deep voice.

"V-Ve~?"

When the area around them returned to being a normal maintenance room, the boys got a better look at their savior – a tall, muscular boy around their age. His hair was blonde and his eyes were a piercing blue. He also wore a black military trench coat trimmed with gold as well as a formal military hat with a cross emblem on the front. This alone made him appear intimidating, nevermind the large, smoking gun he carried in his right hand.

Kiku managed to stand, wary of the large soldier in front of them, but Feliciano was still taken aback. Kneeling down to his level, the blonde extended a hand towards the Italian.

"That was a Familiar. There was only one, so you should be safe," he explained pulling Feliciano to his feet. "Were either of you harmed before I arrived?"

This snapped Feliciano's attention back to the matter at hand.

"Yes! We have to help this little one!" he insisted, showing the injured animal to the blue-eyed boy in front of him. "He said his name was—"

"Kyubey," the taller of the two finished. "Please let me see him."

"You know him?" Feliciano asked, putting his trust in the soldier and handing over the injured cabbit.

"Yes, he's an old friend of mine," the black-clad teen stated, as his gun vanished into thin air. Suddenly a gold light filled his hands and began to heal the animal's injuries.

"And you are…?" Kiku asked hesitantly.

"Oh, my apologies. My name is Ludwig. Ludwig Beilshmidt."

"Ludwig…" the brunette repeated, letting the name roll over his tongue.

"Yes?"

"E-Er, are you a superhero or something?"

Ludwig actually chuckled a bit and shook his head while Kyubey stretched, fully healed, ready with an explanation.

/Ludwig is a Puer Magi, a Magical Boy, granted the use of magic to fight monsters./

"Puer Magi…?" Kiku repeated. "Is that Latin?"

/Very good,/ the small animal nodded in confirmation. /He was granted a wish in exchange for his service as a Puer Magi, one who fights the Witches and creatures born from curses./

For a reason Feliciano just couldn't place, this sounded familiar. He knew that he heard it before somewhere, but where? Just as he was about to ask Kyubey another question, Ludwig snapped to attention and stood in front of the others, hand extended, ready to summon another gun if needed.

"Who's there?" he called out sternly.

"No one you need to concern yourself with, dumbass."

Feliciano gasped as Lovino stepped out of the shadows, pulling back his hood. Lovino appeared even more scowly than when the boys had first met him at school, a feat Feliciano didn't think possible. He had also changed out of his school uniform and into a flowing Italian costume that looked like it would be right at home in a Renaissance Faire. The tunic was white and trimmed with a deep green that also appeared on the inside of Lovino's one-shouldered cape/sash. Everything was cropped just above the Italian's knees to allow for quick movements.

Oh, and he also had a gun aimed in Ludwig's general direction.

"Back away from the beast," he commanded them.

Feliciano shivered and held the creature in his arms tighter. What did Lovino want with Kyubey? The beast in question showed no sign of apparent distress, instead maintaining the same plastered smile as always. He knew he was safe, at least for now.

"You know I can't do that," Ludwig answered evenly.

Feliciano looked at Ludwig in wonder, mentally asking himself if he had guns pointed at him every day to be so calm about it. Kiku looked back and forth between Lovino and Ludwig in confusion, mentally asking himself if he and Feliciano had accidently stumbled upon a cosplay event.

Lovino on the other hand, was less than pleased with the situation. He pulled back on the hammer of his gun and took aim.

"I won't ask again potato bastard…"

**Chapter 1 - END**

**::A/N::**

There was the first chapter. I had to cut it a little short due to page limit restrictions, but whatever. I die every time I imagine Ludwig prancing around in Mami's pretty little skirt and feather hat. (And they both love baking cakes which makes it even funnier in my screwed up mind.)

So, please let me know what you think. There will be a Nation counterpart to every main character that appeared in _Madoka_ and then some, but they may be different than who you're expecting… Have fun trying to figure out who's who!

For those of you who are curious (you'll have to google the characters, as the site doesn't let me post links):

_Ludwig's Puer Magi costume inspiration_: Think modern day HRE, I found a pic on zerochan of him holding Chibitalia with Germany holding Italy above them, which inspired the modern look. There's probably a few Gerita fans that not only know the pic, but have it saved in at least seven different locations.

_Lovino's Puer Magi costume inspiration_: Ezio Auditore from Assassin's Creed 2...with a few modifications and green in place of red.

**Translation Corner-**

I tend to include foreign words in my fics, so you can see definitions here. If you see something that's wrong or that you want to add on, let me know so I can fix it.

**Taika **(Lith.) "Peace"

**Otto Edelstein** – You've probably figured out by now that he's Holy Roman Empire, who proved next to impossible to find a Human Name for, so I went with "Otto" naming him after Otto the Great, founder of the Holy Roman Empire. I gave him Roderich's surname, since he's supposed to be his kid in this (although the canon HRE will always be a Beilshmidt to me). Kinda works, yes?

**Ja** (Ger.) "Yes"

**-kun **(Jap.) Honorific used to express endearment/familiarity with the person who's name is attached to it. Typically used by close friends or family.

**Non** (Fre.) "No"

**Entrare** (It.) "Enter"

**Cazzo** (It.) "Dick" The all purpose Italian swear word that technically means a specific part of the male anatomy, but can be used in other ways (such as "fuck" and "shit") too.

**Parla Italiano?** (It.) "Do you speak Italian?"

**Firenze** (It.) "Florence" As in Florence, Italy. Which technically is in North Italy, but there's still a reason Lovino is using it.

**Vai all'inferno** (It.) "Go to hell" Probably not a good way to greet your classmates. Well… depends on your classmates….

**Mon ami** (Fre.) "My friend"

**Amour** (Fre.) "love"

**Xiǎaotíqín** (Chi.) "violin" Not terribly original, but I'm not terribly familiar with the Chinese language, aru.

**Kawai** (Jap.) "cute" But I'm thinking you probably already knew that.


	2. A Wish Worth Giving Your Life For

**Puer Magi Feliciano Magica**

By: oONekomataOo

**Disclaimer:** One can own the pasta, but not the Nation that endorses it…Or Hetalia in general.

**Warnings:** AU, magical boys, Romano's mouth, creepy mascots, shonen-ai (boy-boy pairings), and France being….well, French. As the series continues, there will also be spoilers for _Puella Magi Madoka Magica_.

**Response To Reviewers**

While I agree that Alfred would have made a good Kyoko, and I did consider it for the fic, I decided on another in the end. Plus, I thought Al as a teacher who acts more like a student would be fun to write. Who wouldn't want a teacher like that? Besides people who actually wanted to learn something….and people who are sensitive to loud noises...and vegans.

Just to clear up the crazy amount of dialog punctuation I use:

"This is someone talking."

'_This is someone thinking' _

("This is someone whispering")

_/_This is telepathy./

Ciao!

**- Chapter 2: "A Wish Worth Giving Your Life For" -**

"I won't ask again potato bastard…"

Lovino eyed the white ball of fur that was the embodiment of all his disgust and hatred, inwardly snarling when it burrowed itself further into Feliciano's worried arms. Not here a day already, and the damned thing was making him out to be the bad guy. Bastard.

Feli was worried about the tall German with a gun standing beside him, but he was more worried about the familiar-looking transfer student aiming a gun at the helpless animal he held shaking in his arms. The poor thing was already injured, why did Lovino want to hurt it more?

Tension ran high and neither Puer Magi was backing down. Feliciano knew he had to do something before anyone got hurt. Without thinking, he shoved Kyubey into a very surprised Kiku's arms and leapt in front of Ludwig, arms outstretched.

"W-Wait! You can't!" the brown-eyed boy exclaimed. "Please don't hurt anyone!"

The second the Italian opened his eyes, he felt Lovino's cold eyes on him and winced; causing the gunslinger to sigh. With a look of annoyance and reluctance, Lovino lowered his weapon and it disappeared somewhere under his cloak. "If it means that much to you, you can keep the damned Rat-Bastard this time," the green-eyed boy frowned. "But next time I'm putting a bullet between its eyes."

"Ve~! Thank you, Lovino!" exclaimed Feliciano, happy that all the big scary weapons had been put away. "I'm glad we were able to—Lovino?" Right in the middle of thanking the green and white clad Puer Magi, Lovino seemed to vanish right before their eyes.

"E-Eh?" An awkward silence followed. "So…" began Kiku, hoping to break the ice. "Was this some kind of cosplay event, Beilshmidt-san?"

"What's cosplay?" asked the blonde? "And please call me Ludwig."

"It's short for 'costume play,'" Kiku explained. "Participants will often wear costumes and accessories to represent a specific role or idea."

"You get to dress up as your favorite characters! It's really fun!" agreed Feliciano, recalling the time Kiku convinced him and Francis to go as characters from some video game called Star Ocean: The Second Story. Feliciano still hadn't seen the series, but had a great time cosplaying Claude C. Kenny.

"You think this is just dress-up?" sighed the German, sweatdrops abound. The non-Puer Magi looked at each other, then back at him in confusion. Kyubey merely watched the trio and leaped back into Feliciano's arms. He felt a little safer there until he knew what he was fully dealing with in terms of Lovino Firenze.

"It's not an act, it's all real," Ludwig said with a serious tone. "I was hunting a Familiar that had recently taken up residence in this mall."

"Oh! That was the thing that attacked us, right?"

"Yes," the blonde nodded towards the brunette. "I had cornered it when that other Puer Magi appeared and began shooting at my partner, Kyubey."

"That's awful!" Feliciano saddened, clutching the white cabbit tighter in his arms. "Why would he do that?"

"I'm not sure, but I think he's gone by now," came the Puer Magi's response. "I think it's safe to detransform before someone else stumbles upon us and asks questions."

"Detransform?" Feli and Kiku said in unison.

A flash of gold light surrounded Ludwig and tightened around his uniform, like several dozen ribbons. Suddenly, the gold ribbons burst from his torso revealing an ordinary school uniform with a familiar W-crest on the vest.

"Is that a World Academy uniform?" asked the Japanese boy.

"Yes."

"That means you go to our school!" beamed Feliciano, poking at the crest. "Amazing! I didn't know I went to school with a super hero!"

"I-I'm not a super hero," Ludwig coughed curtly, not used to having someone in his personal bubble that wasn't his brother, Kyubey, or the occasional Witch so big it took up half its Barrier. "I'm a Puer Magi."

"Oh, right!" the Italian smiled.

"I keep forgetting!"

/You could be Puer Magi, as well./ Kyubey tilted his head. /You both have great magical potential, especially you, Feliciano Vargas./

"M-Me?" the brunette squeaked.

'_Him?!_' the blonde couldn't help but think. He looked the Italian over again, but didn't sense anything resembling extraordinary fighting skills. If anything, Feliciano looked too innocent to be a warrior. His aura practically oozed naiveté and pasta seasonings. '_I realize he got the other Puer Magi to turn away, but HIM?!_'

"I-I don't know what you mean…" Feliciano said, also in disbelief.

/You possess the some of the strongest potential I've sensed in a long time./

Feli felt the faintest glimmer of déjà vu. Ludwig felt his mind reeling.

"How does one measure magic potential?" Kiku asked curiously.

"It comes innately to my race, but to put into human terms…" Kyubey trailed off as his large ears perked up. A few moments later, the others heard it too – voices just outside the maintenance room.

"Ve~ There's someone out there!" whimpered Feliciano.

"Shh!" Kiku tried to hush his friend. ("You must stay silent or they will hear us, Feliciano-kun.")

"Veeeee~"

The trio and critter listened while the voices and footsteps walked past the door and continued down the hallway, growing softer and softer.

"Perhaps this isn't the best place to talk…" Ludwig sweatdropped.

/Ah, but there is much to talk about…/ Kyubey pouted. He sounded disappointed, or at least as disappointed as a perpetually cheerful cabbit could sound.

"Indeed."

"We could go to the Mint Bunny Café!" Feliciano suggested. "I was getting a little hungry anyhow."

"I don't think that's an appropriate place to discuss….confidential topics…" Kiku chuckled.

"Oh…"

"You're welcome to discuss it at my place," Ludwig offered, more than a little surprised that those words actually came out of his mouth. He had wanted to help them, yes, but up until now Ludwig had always carried his own burdens and fought alone. Panicking, he realized he didn't know the first thing about fighting as a team.

"Ve~! Can we really?" Feli asked, all disappointment about his café idea being shot down having been completely erased.

"S-Sure." Ludwig managed a partial smile. '_No turning back now, I suppose_.'

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The boys followed the tall German back to his apartment. Ludwig was nervous about having people over. He _never_ had people over. His brother was the sociable one, not him. Kiku was also feeling a little nervous about going over to new place. He wanted to be a good guest, but was also a little uncomfortable around the Puer Magi after everything that had happened. Were all Puer Magi as calm as Ludwig or as crazy as Lovino? What if their new friend suddenly pulled a gun on them too? Kiku wished he had his kendo blade with him to feel more secure.

Meanwhile, Feliciano happily skipped alongside the two worrywarts. He wasn't about to let a slightly uneasy atmosphere ruin his cheery mood, he couldn't even _read_ the atmosphere. The Italian was just happy to spend time with his friends, and if food was included in the deal, then all the , Kiku believed a stranger could kidnap the Italian just by offering him some pasta if he came into their big, black, tinted window van for a minute.

Ludwig's apartment was located within walking distance of the Nor 5 Mall in a residential district. Several other identical-looking apartment complexes lined the streets and Feliciano was impressed Ludwig could tell his apart from all the others. It wasn't a long walk, but by the time they entered the front gates, Feliciano had already learned that Ludwig was 17, a year ahead of them in school, had an interest in mechanical projects, enjoyed working out, and was also quite the accomplished World War II model plane collector. Don't ask how he figured out the last one.

As the group went inside, Kiku politely took off his shoes while Feli strode past them, following the scent of something delicious.

"Mmm, I smell cake!" the brunette said excitedly.

"Er, yes," the German scratched his head and looked down, slightly embarrassed. "On occasion, I like to…bake…" "Wow! That's so cool, Ludwig," Feli beamed. "I like to cook too! My favorite dish is pasta! Oh, but I like pizza too. What kind of cake did you make?"

"Obsttorte," Ludwig began, then noticed their confused expressions. "It's like a fresh fruit torte."

"It sounds delicious!" Feliciano smiled. "Can we have some?"

"Feliciano-kun!" hissed Kiku, scolding his friend.

But Ludwig had barely heard Kiku. Nobody outside his immediate family had ever asked to try some of his homemade cake before. Ludwig had a strange worried, but lightheaded feeling.

"Sure, if you would like."

"S-Sorry, Ludwig-san, we'd hate to make you go to any trouble on our part…"

"It's no trouble at all," the blonde insisted. "I'll go get the Obsttorte, please make yourselves at home at the table."

The duo followed him into the living room and sat at the large table while Ludwig disappeared into the kitchen. Kiku politely sat himself at the table. Feliciano managed to follow him, but was constantly distracted by every photo, book, and model plane he laid his eyes on. The apartment was very neat and organized, everything from the furniture to the magazines on the living room table seemed to have a specific place.

Not long after, Ludwig returned with the fruit torte cake, topped with fresh strawberries and blueberries. The veteran served the Puer Magi candidates, who were quick to take a bite of the tasty looking dessert. Life or death situations will do that to you.

"This cake is _delizioso!_" Feliciano proclaimed.

"Yes, it's very good, Ludwig-san. Bakery quality at least," added Kiku.

"Thank you…" Ludwig replied, a little unsure of what to say. This was new territory for him. "I really only get to share this with my bruder when he's off work, so this is…nice."

"Do you share it with your parents?" Feli asked.

"No, actually I lost them both in a car accident…"

Feliciano quickly blurted out an apology and Kiku said they were sorry for his loss, but the older boy just waved them off. It had already been two years, he was more than used to it by now. He was Ludwig Beilschmidt, resident hard-ass; he wouldn't let anything get to him or reveal a weakness.

"But…you know, it can still hurt," Feli began, his eyes tinged with sadness. "No matter how long ago it's been, things like that still hurt."

The others turned to look at the brunette.

"I mean, I lost my family when I was five and even now it still hurts…" Feliciano blinked and tried to quickly recover from the sudden bout of sadness. "That is, I still love my adoptive family, of course! I'm really happy to have met them and so lucky they chose me! U-Um, now I'm rambling…I'm sorry…"

Ludwig sat through Feliciano's explanation in a confused manner, but felt a smile tug on his cheeks by the end of it.

"Don't be," was all he said.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Kyubey was patient enough to sit through the GerIta fluff for an entire slice of cake (and hey, he couldn't complain because he got some too) before he decided to bring the boys back on track. After all, there were more important things to discuss (in his mind) than tragic pasts and potential character backstory.

/Now then, I suppose you both have questions about Puer Magi, Witches, and Familiars…/

The question was directed at the two sophomores, but projected so that everyone in the room could hear.

"Y-Yeah!" Feliciano began. "Are all of those monsters so weird looking?"

If Kyubey was capable of sweatdropping, he would have. Of all the things the boy could have asked him, he was curious about how strange the Witches and Familiars looked.

Ludwig, however thought this was funny and smirked a bit, despite himself.

"Most are 'weird looking,' but what I was fighting was a Familiar. Witches are much larger and more deadly. They are like the bosses of the Familiars."

"T-That sounds scary," gulped the brown-eyed boy. Suddenly this Puer Magi stuff wasn't sounding so good.

"The risk does sound great…" Kiku trailed off, also sounding reluctant.

"Ja, there is risk involved, but it pales in comparison to destroying a Witch and saving a life," said the veteran. "For me the reward is worth the risk."

"The reward is worth the risk…" repeated the Japanese boy.

"I guess that sounds right," nodded Feliciano. "Fighting is scary, but saving lives is important too. We wouldn't be here right now if you hadn't saved us, Ludwig!"

"If you would like, I can take you on a Witch Hunt to see one for yourselves. It may help you decide if there's a wish you would risk your lives for," the taller boy began, trying to brush off the compliment. He wasn't quite used to people thanking him for his actions. Typically the people he saved were civilians that had fainted from fear or unknowing targets that continued to go about their daily routine while he blew a dangerous monster to kingdom come not five feet from where they were standing. "I promise to keep you both safe, of course."

The two candidates looked at each other then back at Ludwig, agreeing to go. Or at least, they agreed to go as soon as Feli was done eating his snack. The cake was _that_ good.

The sun began to droop a little in the sky as the afternoon turned to dusk. Kiku called his parents to let them know he would be home a little late. Feliciano didn't worry about it, as his curfew was 10:00 and his family knew he was responsible…or at least hung out with responsible friends like Kiku.

Kiku, the reliable and rational guy that he was, thought about how bizarre his day had become. He never imagined that he'd wake up today, get attacked by a killer cottonball, meet a pair of magical boys plus their talking pet, and then go on a hunt for Witches that killed people in the shadows. His life was becoming more and more like the animes he liked to watch.

"So how do you find the Witches?" the brunette asked. "Do you have a special gadget or radar?"

"Sort of," replied the German, holding up his ring with a golden stone embedded in it. "This helps me find Witches and Familiars."

"Ooooh…What's it do?"

"Whenever I'm close to either, it will begin to glow. The brighter the glow, the closer I am to the Barrier – the dimension the Witch or Familiar lives in."

"So they live in different dimensions?!" Feli asked incredulously, Kyubey nearly falling off his shoulder perch.

"Technically, yes, but people from our world can get sucked in," Ludwig added. "The Barriers are set up using something called a Grief Seed that subliminally calls out to people experiencing negative emotions like fear or depression, although sometimes others walk in by accident like you two did."

"What's a Grief Seed look like?"

"I'll show you once I defeat the Witch," the blonde smirked at his new friend.

"Ah, Ludwig-kun! Your ring is glowing!" the black-haired boy exclaimed, a little startled by the sudden golden glow.

"That means we're getting closer," nodded the Puer Magi, glancing around the abandoned park. "I don't see anyone else around; that's good."

"They appear in places like this?" fretted Feli. "I take my little brother to parks all the time on weekends…"

"Usually, Witches choose more secluded areas and draw despairing people to them," Ludwig tried to comfort him. "And even in highly populated areas like this, people seldom walk in by accident."

"O-Ok."

"It's getting brighter…"

"That means we're almost there. Are you two ready?"

Both boys nodded, one more bravely than the other, and the world began warping around them again. Similar to the maintenance room, the sky became covered with greenhouse glass and the temperature rose quickly. Next, came the overpowering scent of dying flowers and olives, causing Feliciano and Kiku to cover their noses in disgust.

"This is just like at the mall!" Kiku shouted.

"But I don't see any cottonball guys!" added Feli, glancing around in worry. "And this is way bigger!"

"Because this is the Witch of the Familiar I fought earlier," Ludwig stated, suddenly becoming wrapped in gold light. As the light faded, he was clad in his combat uniform once more. "The Witch is in here somewhere, most likely guarded by more of the 'cottonball guys' as you call them."

"You mean there's more than one?!" shrieked the brunette.

"Yes, Witches create the Familiars to carry out orders," Ludwig explained, then saw Feli tremble. "But you don't need to worry. Stay near me and you'll be fine."

"Th-Thanks, Ludwig!" Feliciano forced a smile, but did feel a little better with those words.

"Kyubey, any idea about this Witch?" the Puer Magi asked.

/We'll have to get a little closer for me to get a better reading./

Feliciano jumped a little, almost having forgotten about the white creature on his shoulder in his fear.

/Is something the matter, Feliciano?/

"N-Nope, just lead the way to the Witch!"

The group hacked and slashed, but mostly shot their way through the foliage. All of the greenhouse tables around them were different heights, ranging from normal, to knee-level, to skyscraper, and all of the plants on them seemed to have minds of their own. Often, tendrils of ivy and vines would seek out someone in their group, but each time Ludwig made short work of them.

True to his word, Ludwig protected Feliciano and Kiku from the horrors of the Witch's Barrier, even when multiple cottonball Familiars attacked in all their mustached fury. After about 20 minutes of this, the group heard a high-pitched wailing coming from the room in front of them.

"This is it," Ludwig said in a low tone. "The Witch is up ahead."

"W-What do we do?" asked the Italian. He was shaking again.

"Just stay behind me and don't run off," Ludwig softened a bit as he instructed them. "I will keep you all safe, don't worry."

The group nodded and entered the door to face the Witch.

And what a Witch it was; giant roots dug into the ground to help support the giant 20 foot beast. Vines, branches, and every kind of decaying plant in the greenhouse was tightly winding across each other in a tree-like shape. At the top of the Witch there was a mouth formed by seashells, grinding against each other as it wailed at the top of its lungs…or whatever the flower equivalent of that was.

Feli and Kiku felt their hearts stop for a moment.

/This Witch is called 'Seborga' and its nature is inferiority…/

"Got it," was all Ludwig said as he summoned several golden chains around the group to serve as a shield of sorts. "I'll be back in a moment."

"L-Ludwig, wait!" Feliciano called out, terrified. "Y-You can't really go out there and f-face that thing! It's huge!"

"F-Feliciano's right," Kiku agreed, catching his stutter and forcing himself to sound as calm as possible. "His sheer size will overpower you. Maybe we should get back up?"

"Please stay behind the chain barrier and everything will be alright," Ludwig commanded before jumping off the hedge and into battle.

"L-Ludwig!" the brunette cried out.

But the veteran Puer Magi had already tuned all distractions out of his mind to allow for increased precision and power in his attacks. He was so focused that in his mind all that existed was himself and the Witch. One would have to die for the sake of saving innocent lives and it wasn't going to be him.

Ludwig landed below and his trench coat flapped around him to reveal several guns that he immediately put to good use. Cottonball minions began blowing up around him, leaving a fluffy cloud of dust. Alerted to his Familiars exploding around him, the Witch turned its seashell mouth towards the Puer Magi and began snapping at him angrily, dropping dead olives in the process.

The candidates watched in awe as Ludwig expertly dodged attacks from both beasts and continued clearing out the room of Familiars. The few who dared go near the group above didn't even get the chance to test out Ludwig's chain barrier before they were blown to bits. It wasn't long before all that was left was the Puer Magi and one very pissed off Witch.

Ludwig took off his hat and waved it over the ground, summoning a large howitzer gun from it. The Witch began diving towards its prey while Ludwig took aim and fired the gun at his behemoth of a target. As the others gasped, the Witch caught several missiles in its mouth and reeled back in pain. It let out one final wail of agony before exploding like the rest of the Familiars.

Feli and Kiku prepared to brace themselves from the force of the blast, but it wasn't necessary. They opened their eyes to see that the golden chains held strong and kept them safe. As the smoke and rubble began to fade and sandboxes, slides, and swing sets took their place, Feliciano glanced around for their hero.

"What did you think?"

"Wooooow!" shouted the excitable Italian. "Ludwig, that was amazing! You were so strong! How did you do all that?!"

"W-Well…"

/Because he is a highly trained Puer Magi/ Kyubey answered for him. /One day, you can be that powerful too…both of you./

"R-Really? I don't think I could ever be that strong!" laughed Feliciano. "Ve~ and I don't really have a good wish, either…"

/Hmm…and what do you think, Kiku Honda?/

"I think I need to take some more time to manifest my inner strength before I consider this…" Kiku mused. "And I also have no worthy wish yet."

"That's fine," Ludwig cut Kyubey off before he pushed the boys further. "It's wise to think it through and make a good wish if this is something you really want to do."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

After that night's adventure, everyone decided it was time to go home. As they discovered, time spent in the Witch's Barrier also passes in their world, so the sun had already begun to set by the time they started walking home. Kiku had decided to take the train home, while Feli felt more up for a walk. Worrying about the easily-frightened Puer Magi candidate, Ludwig had offered to walk with him. He also showed him the Grief Seed he had collected from the Witch's remains, as promised.

"So that's a Grief Seed?" Feli poked at the small object in Ludwig's hand that glistened under the street light. It looked like a needle with a black ball wrapped in thin wiry patterns. At the top of the ball was a tiny flower design.

"Yes," nodded the German as he brought it up to his ring and began sucking the small tendrils of darkness from it. "Puer Magi use them to cleanse our Soul Gems."

"Soul Gems?"

"They are what is formed when a candidate makes a contract with Kyubey to become a Puer Magi. It's a reflection of our power. When we use too much magic, it begins to dim and we get weaker. The Grief Seeds keep us strong by cleansing the impurities."

"Is it supposed to look like that?" the brunette asked, gesturing to the even darker looking Grief Seed.

"Its neared the end of its usefulness," stated the taller boy. "Each Grief Seed can only cleanse so much darkness before it becomes unstable. When that happens, I give them to Kyubey for safekeeping."

"I'm sorry, Ludwig…" Feliciano began.

"About what?"

"I feel like I really let you and Kyubey down today."

"How so?" Ludwig asked. "There wasn't anything you could do to fight the Witch."

"Not that," Feli shook his head. "About my wish. I…I just can't think of one right now."

"Is that all?" the blonde chuckled. "You shouldn't rush something like that. If you want to risk your life being a Puer Magi, it should be for a wish worth giving your life for. I'm jealous that I had didn't have a chance like this to take my time and think my wish through clearly."

"Ve~" mused the Italian, resting his hands behind his head. "What did you wish for, Ludwig?"

"In my case, Kyubey appeared to me during the car crash with my parents," the German closed his eyes and opened them slowly, remembering every detail. "I wasn't thinking straight and was in so much pain that I wished for him to save me, when I should have wished for him to save all of us…I still regret that to this day."

"I-I'm sorry…" Feli looked down, then remembered something. "What about your brother?"

"Gil survived by staying at a friend's house at the time I was driving with our parents."

"Oh, well, that was very lucky!"

"Yes, he's a little strange at times and he always leaves a mess in the apartment, but I don't know what I would have done without him."

The pair chatted for a little more until Feliciano's house appeared and the two bid their farewells.

"Goodnight Ludwig!" the brunette said cheerfully. "Thanks for all your help today!"

/It was no trouble at all. I enjoyed meeting you and Kiku. Have a goodnight./

Feli waved again to his friend before entering his home. He greeted his adoptive family and said he had a great time hanging out with Kiku and meeting a new friend. It wasn't until he got upstairs to his room and got ready for bed did he realize…

/I CAN USE TELEPATHY?!/

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The next day, the brunette wasted no time revealing this fun fact to Kiku, who was also entranced by the idea of using telepathy. They were so engrossed with mentally speaking to each other that they forgot all about poor Francis chattering beside them and giving them annoyed looks on their walk to school. It wasn't until the 3rd time Feliciano and Kiku laughed about a telepathic inside joke that Francis began to pout.

"Mon dieu! Can it be?" he dramatically raised his hands heavenward. "You two have secretly become a couple and are leaving me behind?!"

This snapped both boys out of their conversation about the ethics of using telepathy during exams immediately. Each felt their cheeks burning in embarrassment.

"N-No, Francis!" Feli shrieked. "It's not like that!"

"Ohonhonhon!" laughed the Frenchman, throwing an arm over each of their shoulders. "I know that, I was just kidding. Although you two _do_ seem a little different today…."

"Surely you're just imagining things," Kiku said, casually brushing off Francis' arm while Feli just laughed.

It wasn't long before school started that the Puer Magi candidates found the second victim of their newfound telepathy – Ludwig.

/Ludwig? Luuuuudwig?! Can you hear me?!/

The blonde mentally sighed as he heard the familiar voice of his new Italian friend, despite being in a different classroom. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to show him how as one with potential for becoming a Puer Magi, that he was also capable of using telepathy.

/Yes, Feliciano. I can hear you./

A loud squeal of excitement was heard in his head, making him cringe a bit.

/Kiku! Kiku! Did you hear that?! Ludwig can hear us too!/

/Remarkable./ Kiku's voice echoed in the German's head (who was very grateful that the Japanese boy was more softspoken). /I wonder what the range of our telepathy is…/

/The entire building should be within telepathic range./ Ludwig informed them. /So please use it to contact me if you are ever in danger./

Ludwig had meant it as a way for the excitable candidates to stop chatting with him during class, but Kiku caught another meaning.

/Do you think…/ Kiku began, warily looking at the less chipper Italian across the room. /Do you think that Lovino will attack again?/

Ludwig sighed again, but realized Kiku had a point and reason to be worried. The German tried to reassure his friends before he was subjugated to more Feliciano shrieks in his head.

/He may be dangerous, but he seems smart and won't attack anyone in public./

Surprisingly, Feliciano did just the opposite of what the German thought he would do.

/Hey, I don't think we should be saying mean things to Lovino./ the other Italian scolded his friends. /He might have his reasons and—DIO MIO!/

Ludwig rubbed his temples in attempts to ward off his oncoming headache.

/CAN LOVINO HEAR US RIGHT NOW?!/ he wailed. /He's going to get so upset!/

/It's ok, Feliciano,/ Ludwig reassured him. /He can't hear us unless we open up a direct line to him—/

/Lovino! Lovino! I'm so sorry! They didn't mean what they said!/

/…Like that./

Lovino ignored them all in annoyance.

/Lovino? Lovino? Can you hear me? Loviiiiiiino! Can you hear meeeeee?!/

/I can when you _scream_ like a fucking five year old!/ he snarled back. /Shut the hell up and leave me out of your stupid chat! I'm busy!/

/Perhaps we should leave him alone for now?/ Kiku directed the question at Ludwig and Feli.

Feliciano pouted and watched Lovino return to being 'busy' ….Which was actually doing nothing. He wondered how Lovino could tune out class like that, be bored all day, and still do so well at school. The amber-eyed Italian recently heard several rumors about the transfer student being really smart and solving a bunch of advanced equations on his first day faster than most of the students who have been here all year. Feli pouted again and wished he could do that.

He chuckled to himself about the idea of that being a potential wish and soon being a Puer Magi was all he could think about. The brunette picked up his pencil and began doodling about the Witch from yesterday, brave Ludwig fighting it, and then potential costumes that he himself would wear as a Puer Magi. Class seemed to fly past him and he actually jumped a bit as the bell signaled the end of homeroom.

In his surprise, he knocked his drawing notebook across the floor, where it skidded to a halt beside the irritable transfer student. Feliciano held his breath as the other Italian bent over to pick it up and nearly ripped it in half when he saw what was doodled across the pages.

Lovino stomped over to Feliciano's desk and slammed the notebook down with enough force to nearly break the desk in half.

"Don't let me see this shit again."

"B-But you were the one that looked at it," Feli stammered, then decided that was probably not the best thing to say to the crazy guy who pointed a gun at him not 24 hours ago. "Why are you so upset?"

"Listen idiota, you need to forget all about being a Puer Magi if you ever want to lead a normal, happy life. Capisce?" Lovino said in a dangerous tone.

Feliciano saddened, trying to figure out why Lovino was so dead-set against him becoming a Puer Magi.

"U-Um, Ludwig said he regretted his wish…" Feli began. "Do you regret your wish too, Lovino? Is that why you're so mad?"

For a few seconds, Feliciano saw Lovino's face contort as if stung by an inner pain before rage took over and Feliciano's desk was nearly crushed in the green-eyed boy's deathgrip.

"Che cazzo?!" the Puer Magi snarled at him venomously. "It's none of your fucking business, pezzo di merda! Just get all those bullshit ideas about being a Puer Magi out of your head!"

Feli winced at the angry tone, daring only to open his eyes when he heard Lovino stomp off. On his way out of the classroom, Francis was nearly victim #2, but jumped out of the way before the raging volcano that is Lovino went off again.

"Are you alright, mon ami?" Francis asked worriedly. "I came back to the room when I realized you hadn't left."

"It's ok, I'm fine!" Feli forced himself to smile. He was glad that most of the class had cleared out before the Puer Magi began yelling at him. The ones that hadn't practically ran out during Lovino's second outburst of various Italian curses and threats.

"It looked pretty serious."

"Lovino just has a short temper," the amber-eyed Italian tried to explain, not completely sure why he felt so compelled to defend the guy who spent more time yelling at him than anything. "But, I'm fine, so it's ok."

"Ahh, I see…" smirked the Frenchman. "You two were having a spat!"

"Franciiiiiis!"

But it was too late, the frog was already skipping out of the room laughing about 'Feli's spat' in a singsong voice. Feliciano would normally chase after someone who did this in embarrassment, but it was Francis, so it was kind of expected. It just wouldn't be a normal day at World Academy if the amour-obsessed Frenchman didn't jump to crazy conclusions about other students and then break into song about it.

-**END: Chapter 2**

**::A/N::**

At first I liked making fun of Ludwig's baking hobby, until I wrote this chapter on an empty stomach. I could have probably written another 10 freaking paragraphs about mouthwatering cakes if I let myself. Typing this out at 2 in the morning, I had never wanted a stupid strawberry more in my entire life :(

And that's my takeaway from this entire chapter. Delicious cake.

**Translation Corner-**

I tend to include foreign words in my fics, so you can see definitions here. To make it shorter, all character names that would be listed here are only listed in the first chapter the character is mentioned in. If you see something that's wrong or that you want to add on, let me know so I can fix it.

**Delizioso **(It.) "Delicious"

**-kun **(Jap.) Honorific used to express endearment/familiarity with the person who's name is attached to it. Typically used by close friends or family.

**Bruder** (Ger.) "Brother" can also be used like this: "Mein bruder ist Preußen" if you want to say "My brother is Awesome." Maybe?

**Ja** (Ger.) "Yes"

**Mon Dieu** (Fre.) "My God"

**Dio Mio **(It.) "My God!"

**Idiota **(It.) "Idiot"

**Capisce **(It.) "Understand?" or "Got it?"

**Cazzo** (It.) "Dick" The all purpose Italian swear word that technically means a specific part of the male anatomy, but can be used in other ways (such as "fuck" and "shit") too.

**Che cazzo** (It.) "What the fuck"

**Pezzo di merda** (It.) "Piece of shit"

**Amour** (Fre.) "Love"


	3. That Would Be Wonderful

**Puer Magi Feliciano Magica**

By: oONekomataOo

**Disclaimer:** One can own the pasta, but not the Nation that endorses it…Or Hetalia in general.

**Warnings:** AU, magical boys, Romano's mouth, creepy mascots, shonen-ai (boy-boy pairings), and France being….well, French. As the series continues, there will also be spoilers for _Puella Magi Madoka Magica_.

**Response To Reviewers**

Sorry for making you guys get hungry for cake!

And yes, I changed the gender of the Witches…partially. In this story, Witches can be male or female. I also gave Kyubey the ability to identify the Witch's name and nature, because I wanted to have fun with coming up with those.

Just to clear up the crazy amount of dialog punctuation I use:

"This is someone talking."

'_This is someone thinking' _

("This is someone whispering")

_/_This is telepathy./

Ciao!

**- Chapter 3: "That Would Be Wonderful" -**

The railroad tracks weren't Lovino's favorite place in the world for more reasons than one. Yet, still here he stood, waiting on the beams of an old crossing sign. He couldn't see the charm in this place when it was still upkept and he sure as hell couldn't see it now. His soul gem began to glow a bright green.

_Finally. _

The world contorted around him, tracks sprouting from the ground in a roller coaster fashion. Most connected in a twisted design, but several were floating in the middle of the sky. Speaking of the sky….

"This place smells like ass…" growled the lone Puer Magi, brushing his hands over the small shield resting on his forearm.

Seconds later the Barrier was ablaze in light. Fire danced on the railcar-esque Familiars as they fell from the floating tracks. In the middle of the battlefield stood Lovino, unleashing round after round of bullets into the creatures.

"You bastardos can tell your ugly-ass boss to come out anytime now!"

As if on cue, the Witch appeared in all of his trainwreck glory.

He didn't need Kyubey to tell him that the name of this Witch is Tielu. Lovino also knew that its nature was 'Arrogance' hence the multitude of threats and jeers at the Witch's expense. What better way to get that cocky son of a bitch Witch to show up then make snide comments about his mother and his railroads overcompensating for something? It was strategy.

Ok, that last bit was a lie, Lovino just liked to yell at people.

As Tielu reeled backwards to regroup, it angrily poured out a cloud of black smog from its smokestack. The freshly spawned Familiars immediately turned their cannons on the Puer Magi to buy time for their master.

Lovino was faster however, and dodged around all of the shots effortlessly while the Witch tried to create more distance between them.

"Where're you going, shithead?" the boy asked, green eyes gleaming. "My _rockets_ are bigger than your shitty little Familiars!"

Instantly, a pair of rocket launchers landed at Lovino's feet, with the third in his arms and aimed at the horde of Familiars foolish enough to fire at the Italian. Once more the railroad barrier caught fire, but this time the Witch was not spared. By Lovino's third shot, Tielu had also succumbed to the fire and a metallic-like scream was heard. As if the twisting metal had a voice and was cursing the smirking Puer Magi as it went down in smoke and flames.

After the warped nightmare railroad gave way to the abandoned one that existed in the true reality, Lovino retrieved his reward – a Grief Seed the size of a plump strawberry. Before he pocketed the large seed, he placed it against his Soul Gem to extract the few tendrils of darkness inside. He hadn't used much magic to win the battle, but better to be safe than sorry. The rest of the Grief Seed could be saved for a rainy day.

"Ahh, arrogance…my favorite," he smirked, referring to the nature of the Witch he'd just blown up. "Hmm?"

As the last of the former Witch's Barrier faded, a small shadow escaped it and scurried off towards the shadows.

"Hmph. I missed? I never miss…" Lovino shrugged the surviving Familiar off. They didn't interest him much.

Or at least they didn't until he saw a trio of kids stumble out of an abandoned railcar that the Familiar was making a dash for. It was injured, which made it desperate. The twisted monster headed towards the kids as fast as it could.

"…Cazzo!" Lovino spat as he drew his gun once more.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Ludwig had been at the local farmer's market picking up ingredients for the week. He was up early, even for him, but he preferred cooking with fresh, less picked over ingredients. Not too many people were up and about the market yet, so the blonde was surprised when he caught a glimpse of a brunette with a familiar gravity-defying curl bobbing to the side of his head. Curious as to what his new protégée of sorts was up to, Ludwig walked over.

"Feliciano?"

"Ve~? Oh, hi Ludwig," came the boy's soft response with a smile.

Now the Puer Magi veteran hadn't known the younger boy for very long, but from what he'd seen, Feli's voice only came in two volumes – loud and _louder_. The quieter tone seemed out of place coming from the easily excitable Italian.

"What are you doing out here so early?" Ludwig asked. The brunette never struck him as a morning person to him.

"Oh, just grocery shopping," Feli forced a smile. "What about you?"

"The same," nodded the German. "My bruder usually asks me to do it because he always gets the wrong things."

Feliciano chuckled a little, but still seemed distracted. The blonde furrowed his brows.

"Is everything alright?"

"Ve~?"

"Er, it's just…you seem a little down is all." Ludwig coughed.

"Yeah…I suppose so…" Feliciano nodded his head, knowing that he couldn't fool his new friend. "At school, I…I talked to Lovino…"

"That explains it," sighed the taller of the two. The irritable Italian had already gained quite the reputation in the short time he'd been there. "Do you want me to talk to him? He didn't threaten you, did he?"

"No, it's nothing like that!" Feli waved his arms. The last thing he wanted was for both Puer Magi to begin fighting in the middle of the school. He suspected they'd get a lot worse than a detention by the time they were done. "It was my fault!"

"I find that hard to believe."

"Ve~! It's true, Ludwig!" insisted the Italian. "He saw my sketchbook where I was drawing pictures of the Witch you fought and Puer Magi uniforms and got really mad."

"I don't see how that's your fault," frowned Ludwig. He thought it was an honorable trait to see the good in people when no one else could, but those people were often the first to be taken advantage of. Ludwig didn't want that to happen to Feliciano.

"Well, no, not that, but after he told me again to not be a Puer Magi, I asked him about his wish and he got really angry. I asked him if he regretted it and he stormed out."

"Ja, it seems like that happens more often than not…" Ludwig sighed.

"What does?"

"Regretting your wish," Ludwig replied. "I haven't met more than a dozen other Puer Magi, but at least half of them seemed to regret some part of their wish. Wording is more important than most realize when making a wish."

"I'm glad you've worked with other Puer Magi, Ludwig," Feliciano smiled sadly. "I feel bad for Lovino, who's fighting all by himself and trying to avoid us…It must be so lonely to fight alone…"

Ludwig felt his chest tighten as that last part hit close to home for him, but covered it up by patting Feli on the shoulder.

"Unfortunately, most Puer Magi choose to fight alone…"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Lovino saw the scared bunch of rugrats scream once they saw the railcar monster charge towards them. He realized they must be afraid or depressed to be able to see the Familiar, children were always more susceptible to the call of a Witch or Familiar. '_Che cazzo! This is why I work alone!' _he thought furiously. He hated when kids got involved.

"If you brats want to keep your heads attached to your bodies, then get the fuck down!" shouted the Italian, as he pulled out a gun and open fired on the Familiar.

The railcar Familiar was knocked off course by the barrage of bullets and exploded just a few feet away from the trio of kids. They screamed and huddled together on the ground, but were safe for the moment. Lovino had made it in time.

The Puer Magi sighed in relief under his breath and readjusted his hood over his eyes. He walked over to the children to make sure they weren't hurt from the blast. Lovino saw that there was one boy with a sailor hat and two girls, all about 10 years old.

"Are you ok?" he asked.

They took one look at him with his strange outfit and gun and began screaming and begging for their lives.

"Ahhhhhh! It's the Rail Tracer!"

"Don't kill us, Rail Tracer! We're just kids! We don't taste good!"

"We don't even have lots of blood! We can show you where there's lots of adults to dismember if you don't hurt us!"

"Shut the hell up, already!" Lovino yelled, holding his ears from the screaming assault. It did nothing to silence them.

"WAAAAAAAA! Don't kill us, Rail Tracer!" they shrieked.

At that point, Lovino did the only mature thing he could think of and pointed his gun at them, angrily demanding they stop screaming. The trio of ankle-biters did so in fear.

"Dio Mio, about time," Lovino frowned, putting his gun away. "What the hell were you brats doing here?"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Kiku was generally a relaxed and calm person, but he had to admit this whole Puer Magi thing had him a little conflicted. This led him to do what he always did in conflicting situations – meditation.

The black-haired boy had woken up well before the sun was up in order to meditate on what it means to have true inner strength and how to be strong like Ludwig. He began several hours ago and barely moved since.

Unlike his Italian friend, Kiku wasn't worried about the fighting aspect of being a Puer Magi. The Japanese boy was extremely skilled in kendo and several forms of martial arts. He believed that by fighting alongside Ludwig, he could greatly increase both their chances of survival.

What was worrying Kiku was his wish.

He could do a lot of good with his wish and wanted to use it on something worthy of the Puer Magi cause. He could save someone's life, find a cure for a terminal disease, or even ask for world peace if he wanted to, but still was unsure of what to wish for. Kiku chuckled to himself when he imagined Feliciano using his wish on an infinite amount of pasta.

'_That does sound like something Feliciano would wish for…'_ he thought to himself with a smile, then realization hit him. _'Wait, that might not be a bad wish if he used it to end world hunger…'_

Kiku shook his head. He was actually debating the idea of ending world hunger with pasta… maybe his Italian friend was starting to be a bad influence on him. The boy readjusted his seiza position. Kiku cleared his head and took a few more calming breaths before continuing his meditation.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Back at the abandoned railroad tracks, the boy/leader of the rugrats stood hesitantly and tried to hide his shaking knees from the older boy who had saved them.

"W-We were ghost hunting," he spoke up to answer his question.

The other two around him quickly agreed as Lovino watched them impassively.

"We heard that a big scary ghost lived here, so we wanted to take a picture of it and sell it," the boy said, regaining his composure. "I didn't think it'd be as scary as the one we found!"

Lovino continued watching him, but said nothing.

"I think we'll have to change our hobby, this one's too scary, y'know?"

Again, his two cronies backed him up.

"But, um, thanks for saving us," the little blonde boy said.

"Sure," Lovino shrugged. "What's your name?"

"Peter."

"Well, Peter, here's a word of advice. You shouldn't play in abandoned railroad stations and you _really_ shouldn't lie to your elders, especially when they're carrying semiautomatics."

Peter stares at him in disbelief that he saw through his lie and asked "H-How…?"

Lovi just turned around and began to walk off.

"Scurry home or the Rail Tracer or whatever would get you."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Feliciano wiped his eyes quickly and smiled brightly at his mentor.

"I still don't have something to wish for, but I'm trying hard to find a good one!"

"I had no idea you wanted to save the world so much," Ludwig chuckled.

"It's not just that…" Feli shook his head.

"What else?" asked the confused German.

"I want to fight alongside you, Ludwig! Then you don't have to be alone anymore!"

Ludwig was surprised for a moment, and then smiled warmly for the first time in a long time.

"That would be wonderful."

-**END: Chapter 3**

**::A/N::**

Hurray! We got through the dreaded 3rd episode and everyone kept their heads!

I tried to make this chapter a little shorter to make it easier to read. I know the last two were crazy-long! After this, chapters will probably be between 8 – 10 pages long to make reading easier for those that have less time to read. Personally, I could read and read forever (I'm a very accomplished procrastinator), but I know not everyone's like that, so let me know what you think :3

**Translation Corner-**

I tend to include foreign words in my fics, so you can see definitions here. To make it shorter, all character names that would be listed here are only listed in the first chapter the character is mentioned in. If you see something that's wrong or that you want to add on, let me know so I can fix it.

**Tielu **(Chi.) "Railroad"

**Bruder** (Ger.) "Brother" can also be used like this: "Mein bruder ist Preußen" if you want to say "My brother is Awesome." Maybe?

**Ja** (Ger.) "Yes"

**Dio Mio **(It.) "My God!"

**Idiota **(It.) "Idiot"

**Capisce **(It.) "Understand?" or "Got it?"

**Cazzo** (It.) "Dick" The all purpose Italian swear word that technically means a specific part of the male anatomy, but can be used in other ways (such as "fuck" and "shit") too.

**Che cazzo** (It.) "What the fuck"

**Pezzo di merda** (It.) "Piece of shit"

**Seiza** (Jap.) "proper sitting" A traditional and formal way of sitting in Japan. The one where you kneel, sit on your heels, and hope your feet don't fall asleep.


End file.
